Jim Gordon is shocked to discover that Detective Flass, the crooked cop that he fought so hard to get arrested back in episode 13, has been exonerated. But how could this be, when the evidence he had collected against him was irrefutable? After discussing the matter with Essen and Harvey Dent, Jim learns that the defense dug up a witness that somehow cleared Flass of all charges. And that witness was someone provided by Commissioner Loeb, who then reinstated Flass as the head of narcotics department, and is now also backing Flass in the upcoming election for president of the Policeman’s Union.
After a visit to Commissioner Loeb’s office, Jim discovers the witness was his very own partner, Harvey Bullock. He watches the tape of Harvey’s confession, in which he claims to have presented false evidence in the trial. Jim immediately confronts him on this. Harvey tells Jim that the only reason why he made the confession was because Commissioner Loeb blackmailed him into doing it. Jim asks what Loeb has on him. Harvey reminds him of the time, long ago, when Jim had been given the task to take Oswald Cobblepot to the edge of a pier and shoot him, as a test and sign of faithfulness to the way things are done at the GCPD. Jim isn’t the only one who was tested in such a way, Harvey reveals.
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In fact, every officer at the GCPD has a “Cobblepot” — a person they were forced to kill in order to be allowed to keep their jobs or their lives. Each time it’s framed as a test of loyalty. But in reality, Commissioner Loeb arranges it to ensure he has something on everyone. That way, if someone doesn’t do exactly as he orders, all he has to do is charge them for murder.
Not willing to let a situation like this go, Jim meets with Harvey Dent and explains the situation. Dent claims that Loeb has nothing on him. He also tries to get information out of Jim on what exactly Loeb has on Bullock, but Jim remains tight-lipped about it.
Finally, Dent offers his advice: they should find Loeb’s treasure trove of information that he uses to blackmail people, and destroy it. It would be too risky to keep it on his person, Dent says; therefore, it would be best to look for someone close to him, someone Loeb trusts absolutely. Dent asks if Loeb has a wife. Jim explains that his wife died awhile ago, and many suspect that Loeb himself killed her. Their attention turns to Dent’s next idea, seeking out Loeb’s old partner.
The two men find Griggs, Loeb’s long-ago partner, and question him about the secret files. When he’s unwilling to talk, they realize Loeb’s got something on him too. Dent says this is his chance to come clean. Griggs, still unwilling to talk outright, gives them a tip instead — talk to a man by the name of Xi Lu, who is often hired to keep things safe. Later, Jim and Dent find Xi Lu; but when they try to pressure him to give them information, the two men end up getting chased out by men with knives. Realizing Griggs set them up, they question him again, this time with Harvey Bullock’s help. Bullock holds his head outside of a moving car until Griggs admits Loeb is working with Falcone.
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It will do no good to try to get the information out of Falcone, they realize. Instead, they need to find someone close to Falcone who will help them. Jim and Harvey Bullock visit the most obvious choice, Oswald Cobblepot, who is very happy to see them. When they explain the situation to him, he’s a bit hesitant to betray his patron, and will only help under two conditions. One, when they find the files, he gets five minutes with them to take what information he wants. Two, he gets one favor from Jim Gordon sometime in the future, no questions asked. Jim agrees to the terms.
Following Oswald’s guidance, they drive until they come to what looks like an ordinary farmhouse. Harvey is suspicious the Penguin is leading them into a trap, but Oswald insists this is where Loeb keeps a great secret — a secret he assumes to be the files.
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They meet the elderly caretakers of the house, and claim to be there for an inspection under Loeb’s orders. The old couple, however, remains highly suspicious of them. During dinner, the men hear a strange noise coming from upstairs, while the old couple continues to question them on who they are and what they’re doing here.
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Finally, the old woman leaves the room for a moment and comes back with a rifle. A shootout ensues, in which Harvey non-fatally shoots the man, and Jim saves Oswald’s life by temporarily taking out the old woman right when she’s about to shoot him. Jim has Oswald guard the old couple while he and Harvey check out the noises upstairs.
In the upstairs attic, they find Mirriam Loeb, the commissioner’s mentally unstable daughter, who makes a hobby out of killing birds and creating jewelry with their bones. After talking with her for a little while, they discover birds are not the only thing she’s killed, and that she murdered her mother long ago when her mother wouldn’t let her perform at a dinner. A noise downstairs alerts them, and they discover that, while Oswald is safe, the old couple has escaped him. Oswald asks if they found what Loeb was hiding. When they say they have, he demands to see it, and out comes Mirriam, who seems very fascinated with Oswald’s resemblance to birds.
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Jim uses Mirriam as blackmail against Loeb, threatening to have her sent to Arkham if he doesn’t cooperate. Loeb offers to resign from his position, but Jim doesn’t want that. With Loeb, he now has leverage; if a new commissioner came, Jim would have no way of controlling him. Loeb agrees to hand over Bullock’s file, but refuses to hand over any others. He also agrees to back Jim as president of the Policeman’s Union instead of Flass. In private, Jim gives Harvey his file. Harvey warns him to be careful what bad things he does in order to accomplish good, and warns him about the favor he owes Oswald.
The show reveals that Oswald and the elderly couple from the farmhouse had a deal, and he’s supposed to help them escape Falcone’s wrath. When Oswald tells the couple he could only get them one ticket out of Gotham, the old woman murders her husband to ensure she’s the one who gets the ticket. When she tries to claim it, however, Oswald reveals there is no ticket; he was merely trying to goad her into killing her husband so he could finish her off with the remaining bullet in the rifle.
Now that Flass is back, Eddie tries to warn Kristen about what a bad man he is and that dating him again isn’t a good idea. But she tells him not to worry because she’s realized there are far better men in the world. Thinking she’s referring to him, Eddie approaches her later to ask her out, and instead meets her boyfriend Tom. Tom, it turns out, likes riddles just like he does, and condescendingly compliments Eddie’s talent for them after a challenge.
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At the hospital, Alfred is recovering well. Jim comes to ask questions; but Alfred doesn’t want his old friend to get in trouble, and says he couldn’t see the man who stabbed him. After Jim goes, Alfred attempts leaving the hospital early so he can investigate what’s going on with the friend who betrayed him. But Bruce orders him to stay where he is.
Soon, Cat visits them at the hospital, and comforts Bruce.
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Bruce tells her that Alfred’s been stabbed, and he believes it has something to do with his meeting with the board at Wayne Enterprises. He thinks Reggie was working for them, and that he’s the one who stole some of his personal files that are now missing. When Bruce reveals he wants to track Reggie down, Cat says it’s not wise for him to go alone. She offers to help him, but Bruce refuses, saying he doesn’t want to risk anyone but himself.
Meanwhile, Fish Mooney awakes to find herself face-to-face with Dr. Dulmacher. This doctor, also known as the Dollmaker, reveals that he likes to switch people’s body parts, make alterations, all in an experiment to see how much it takes to change the essence of a person. Despite the sinister nature of his hobby, he appears very friendly and kind to Fish. She discovers he has even performed a surgery on her, replacing the eye she crushed. It’s a perfect match, he says, except for the color.
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Fish asks that he make her his right-hand woman. When Dr. Dulmacher seems skeptical of this idea, she reminds him how far she’s gotten just as a captive, and how much more she could do if on his side. The Dollmaker decides to test her — to send her back to the basement, so that she will give back the guard and prove whether or not she can use her influence over the prisoners to make them give up their bodies for his use. Before letting her go, the doctor demonstrates what happens to those who fail him by showing her the fate of his manager, whose head has now been placed on a woman’s body.
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Fish returns to the basement to find people doubting her loyalty, and Kelly standing up for her. She makes them let the guard go, and allows the other guards to take a few people to be used for parts — including Kelly. The prisoners are shocked at this, but Fish says she promised from the beginning that some of them would die and her promise remains the same.
Once Fish has done this, Dr. Dulmacher congratulates her on completing her task, and promotes her to upper management. Looking out the window, Fish discovers they are on an island, from which there is no escape.
Final Thoughts:
This episode contained many interesting elements. I loved seeing Jim and Oswald work together. I can’t help wondering what will happen when Falcone inevitably finds out that Oswald betrayed him. Although, I have to admit my favorite part was between Oswald and the bird-killer, Mirriam Loeb. I also loved the little nod to Oswald and Gertrud’s relationship in one scene.
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It was nice to see Harvey Dent again, though he had his suspicious moments as always. Why was he so anxious to find out what Loeb has on Harvey Bullock? And why is he one of the few people (if not the only person) that Loeb isn’t blackmailing?
Now that Fish has become the official assistant to the Dollmaker, I wonder if that will work for her or against her. Will she use the doctor’s body-swapping skills to finally get revenge on Oswald (possibly by altering someone close to him)? Or will she end up being the one physically altered beyond repair?
I also found it interesting that Fish now has unmatching colored eyes. It reminds me of a villain from the Batman comics named Duela Dent. Duela also had non-matching eye colors. She also, incidentally, worked with the Dollmaker for a time. Is this connection purposeful on the part of the showrunners?
What’s to Come:
News for the show has been very slow lately since we’ve come to a fairly large break from new episodes. However, we have been given a small glimpse at what’s coming. Large spoilers for future episodes to follow.
Lucius Fox will be coming to Gotham, played by 12 Years a Slave actor Chris Chalk.
Spy cameras have gotten footage of a scene depicting Eddie killing someone. Who it is he kills isn’t yet known, though many suspect it to be Tom, Kristen’s new boyfriend.
A casting call has also gone out for singles, as well as real life couples, to play prostitutes and other members of a brothel. So apparently a brothel will be the setting for some future Gotham scene.
And finally, the biggest news of all. Jada Pinkett Smith has revealed that she is leaving the show. One way or another, this season’s grand finale will see the end of Fish Mooney.
In the meantime, Gotham has officially gone on hiatus. The show will return April 13th, and Gotham Recaps will begin again on April 19th. See you then, Gothamites!
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